Today's Technology for Tomorrow's Firm.
Issue link: https://cpapracticeadvisor.epubxp.com/i/76159
FROM THE TRENCHES ES TO WATCH industry-wide organization Uni- fied EFI Forum. UEFI is not restricted to any specific proces- sor architecture and can run on top of, or instead of, older BIOS implementations. But that will change with Windows 8 when UEFI becomes the default boot system. r */5&- 4 *7: #3*%(& 5&$)/0-- 0(: — the third generation of iCore Generation of Hardware has been released. Ivy Bridge is the codename for Intel 's 22 nm die shrink of the Sandy Bridge microarchitecture based on tri-gate ("3D") transistors. Ivy Bridge processors will be back- wards-compatible with the Sandy Bridge platform, but might re- quire a firmware update (vendor specific). Intel will release new 7-series Panther Point chipsets with integrated USB 3.0 to com- plement Ivy Bridge. In February 2012, it was reported that Intel would postpone the launch of the dual-core mobile CPUs (not desktop CPUs or quad-core mo- bile CPUs) to June 2012 to allow more time to sell surplus invento- ry of Sandy Bridge CPUs, which accumulated due to slower than expected computer sales. Tis in fact has now happened. r 130$&44034 '30. 05)&3 $0.1"/*&4 -*,& "3. 03 ."37&- will appear in more phones, tablets and specialized products. Tese processors re- quire less power, but can provide ample horsepower to run applica- tions for mobile use. r 5)6/%&3#0-5 — Tunderbolt is a standard type of connection that might be used by any num- ber of different kinds of devices. Generally, it refers to the types of cables, ports, and connectors used to connect Tunderbolt de- vices to computers. Tunderbolt is considered a potential replace- ment for USB, FireWire, PCIe, SCSI, SATA, and other forms of data transfer methods. Consider- ing the potential applications of Tunderbolt, it could eventually reduce the types of connections available in computer devices. Tunderbolt supports a data rate of 10 Gbit/s in both directions. Visit www.thunderboltechnology. net. r #-6&5005) — Bluetooth low energy (BLE) is a feature of Bluetooth 4.0 wireless radio tech- nology, aimed at new, principally low-power and low-latency, ap- plications for wireless devices within a short range of up to 50 meters or 160 feet. Tis facilitates a wide range of applications and smaller form factor devices in the healthcare, fitness, security and home entertainment industries. r 40-*% 45"5& %3*7&4 44% — SSD and Hybrid Hard Drives (HHD) drives have performance benefits over Hard Disk Drives (HDD), such as boot time and response, but the quality varies as does the life span of the drive depending on the type of work you do. With boot times of under 21 seconds and fast I/O, SSD will pay for itself. One estimate puts the life expectancy of SSDs at 50 years, another at less than four. No one really knows for sure… yet, so you should still back up frequently. Expect SSDs to last for several years. Since there are unexplained failures, though, test your SSDs with the free utility htp://ssd-life.com. r (03*--" (-"44 — Tis Corn- ing product promises to give us more durable tablet and phone screens. Less prone to breakage, and more sensitive to touch. r .6-5* 506$) .064& 1"%4 are just one of the new ways to navi- gate (Mouse and Keyboard vs. Touch and Motion). When you reflect on touch in phones, tab- lets and other products like the Microsoſt Surface 2 or on mo- tion used in capture, gaming or gestures, we can't help but reflect on the change in using technol- ogy over the last three years or so. August 2012 t www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com 15